Chapter Ten: All's Fair in War

The sun was heavy on the back of Ash's neck. Her eyes squinted at the glare and she reached up a hand to wipe the sweat from her brow. She could barely focus on the pompous magister standing what seemed like a mile away from her, sneering down at them over a hook of a nose.

"Magister Livius Erimond of Vyrantium," he said sweeping into a mocking bow, short and over-flourished. "At your service, Inquisitor." His voice was very much like that of a snake; Ash was certain. She watched him with her eyes narrowed, saying nothing. She could feel her magic hum beneath her skin. She knew what was too come and her nervous energy only served to feed the heat in her bones.

Dazed, she was aware of Sythari's indigence, she watched as the Wardens obeyed Erimond's words like some sick attempt at marionettes, she heard the curse that Varric and Hawke muttered in unision, the sharp intakes of breath from Dorian and Sythari and Blackwall, and the growl that came from Iron Bull's throat. She listened as Sythari and Hawke voiced their protests and as Erimond taunted his responses at them.

"Ha!" Erimond barked. "Made them? No! Everything you see here? The blood sacrifices to bind the demons? The wardens did it of their own free will. Fear is a very good motivator, and the Wardens were very, very afraid."

pBlackwall's face turned red. "That's a lie! They are heroes. The Wardens would never do this willingly!"

Sythari's knuckles turned white on top of her leather wrapped staff. Ash felt her own magic flicker nervously from her fingertips. This was it. She looked at the Shade demons hovering by the wardens and shivered when she felt the air they gave off...at its wrongness. She could hear them, hissing ever so softly with what she imagined must be the Fade. It pulled at her consciousness, beckoning to her. It disgusted her. Everything about it was...wrong.

Erimond raised his hands and suddenly Sythari was on the ground. She cried out as her mark flared with green light. Ash stepped toward the elven woman, registering that Erimond still talked. Before she reached Sythari, however, the Inquisitor stood, throwing her arm outwards and ripping the very air where Erimond stood in two. The force of the blast whipped Ash's braid from her shoulder. Iron Bull shifted to stand in front of her, arms reached for the axe across his shoulders. Her staff was already in her hands and her magic lit the crystal at the tip.

"Kill them!"

The rage demon roared and Ash brought her hands to her ears at the noise. It vibrated to her core, loud and intruding. Her teeth clenched tightly together, resisting with all of her being. Iron Bull shoved her roughly backwards, away from the advancing demons, and she would have fallen had the tip of her staff not caught the stones. She looked up and it was chaos all around her. Dorian and Sythari both were furiously casting spells, they were a storm of movements. Hawke, she noticed, had disappeared into the shadows to stalk behind the demons. She noticed that none of them were eager to attack the wardens, Blackwall's face was set in stone as he blocked a Warden's blade with his shield. She stood, frozen in place. Solas had been right. Hitting practice dummies had not prepared her for this.

"Ash!" Varric yelled at her. Her eyes snapped to her left as a demon raised its skeletal arms, claws extended into knives and headed straight at her face. Her arms jerked forward and she watched the curved blade of her staff sink into the demon's chest. Fire laced down her arms and along her staff and licked at the demon before engulfing it in flame. The demon screamed. Ash cried out and twisted her staff deeper, forcing more fire into the demon. The noise it was letting out was one that she would not soon forget. It was likely to haunt her dreams. Then, the thing exploded.

Ash felt surreal as the gore of the demon rained around her. It burned lightly on the skin of her arms it peppered. But she was unable to think on it then. The adrenaline coursing through her body took over and she heard the sizzle of the lighting as it arched from her staff only to strike another demon in place. She surrendered as her body acted mechanically, separate from her.

She heard Iron Bull's shout as the last Warden fell, and Ash stilled. It was over. Her staff fell from suddenly numb fingers to clatter loudly on the ground. She dropped to her knees with it, legs unable to hold her up. She could have died. It wanted to kill her. It almost did. A shaky breath made its way past her lips. She wondered vaguely if she had remembered to breathe this whole time. It felt like years had gone by. A calloused hand fell on her shoulder and she looked up the arm to the body it was attached to. It was Hawke.

"Are you alright?" he asked her. He was concerned and frowning. Whether from the sun or at her, she was unsure. Ash nodded, making no move to stand. Hawke pursed his lips. Dorian came into view, crouched beside her. His hand replaced Hawke's gently.

"Can't stand?" he asked. Ash shook her head. He nodded and sat beside her. Ash was thankful for the company. It was oddly comforting.

Hawke went to join Sythari and Blackwall before they promptly began arguing. She didn't pay attention. She knew as soon as she heard the word. Adamant. Sythari wanted them to go there immediately. She would send ravens for Cullen's men to meet them there. It grew quiet once again and Ash continued staring at the cloudless sky, mind blank.

A shadow stepped into her peripheral. She started to see Iron Bull standing above her, arms crossed, eyebrow raised at her. "Need a hand?" he asked. Ash shrugged.

"My legs didn't want to work a few seconds ago," she said.

Dorian had stood, she noticed and looked around at the faces set into grim lines, obviously intent to leave. She unfolded her legs and attempted to stand. Ash wobbled.

"Woah," Iron Bull said. He caught her one handed before she could fall back over. "That's that then." Once he was sure she was stable, he reached behind him to unclip his axe and lowered it to the ground. He knelt, back to her. "Hop on." Ash blinked and didn't move. Iron Bull turned his head. Ash opened and closed her mouth. She shook her head and walked forward where Iron Bull helped her climb onto his shoulders. He stood and Ash got a sense of vertigo once he was fully standing. She looked down at the others who were watching the two of them, mouths open. The silence lasted two of Ash's heartbeats before Sythari broke into peals of laughter, Hawke grinned, Varric snorted, Blackwall shook his head, and Dorian wagged his eyebrows at Ash, grinning. Ash giggled.

Iron Bull twisted his head to grin at her. "That's better," he said. He looked back at Sythari. "Well? What are we waiting for?"

Sythari shook her head, eyes bright with mirth, before she started walking out of the ruined building.

As Varric passed the two of them by he looked up at Ash. "Not exactly what I was picturing when you mentioned 'riding the Bull' Tiny, but I'll take it," he said and kept walking, not letting them respond.

Ash blushed.

Author Note: A little short, but that's all I've got for now! Think of it as a transitional chapter. Didn't exactly want to skip over this bit, but didn't want to go into too much on it either.

As always, thanks for reading! And keep the comments coming; loving it.

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